Major Victories For Gun Owners in 2015

Dec 10, 2015

Concealed Carry and Open Carry Wins of 2015

With 2015 about ready to come to a close, there have been a lot of great wins for the concealed carry and open carry communities. So hitch up your gun belts and let’s take a look at some of them below.

Florida Open Carry Law Passes

In a narrow margin of victory, a bill to allow open carry in Florida passed with a 7-6 vote in the Justice Appropriations Subcommittee (JAS) during November 2015. The bill, which was first introduced in September, passed through Florida’s House Criminal Justice Committee with no issues. However, the local sheriff of two Republican members of the JAS pressured them to vote against the bill.

Florida is a very gun-friendly state, but before the passage of this bill, it was one of only five in the country that did not allow open carry. With 1.4 million concealed carry permit holders in the state, this was a huge win for the pro-gun community in 2015.

Less Hassle to Obtain a CCW in Michigan

New rules recently approved in Michigan will make obtaining a CCW permit much more hassle-free. Under the old rules, those interested in obtaining a CCW in Michigan went before a gun board that contained law enforcement and prosecutors. The gun boards would then decide whether to issue a permit or not. They had the power to deny anyone a permit who they felt posed a safety risk. That included those who had no felony convictions and met all other CCW requirements.

The new rules that have gone into effect do away with the gun boards. Now, those looking to get their CCW license will apply at the County Clerk’s office and undergo a background check by state police. The new rules also require the Clerk’s office to issue a permit within 45 days of the background check being completed instead of the two month period they had before. If no permit is issued within 45 days, the background check receipts can be used as a legal CCW permit.

This makes Michigan a true “shall-issue” state and that is a major win for the pro-gun community in Michigan.

Maine Goes Permit-less

The state of Maine joined Alaska, Arizona, Kansas, Vermont, and Wyoming as states that allow citizens who can legally own a gun to carry that gun concealed without requiring a permit. This type of law is something that the majority of pro-gunners would like to see get passed in every state and it is good to see another state join the ranks.

According to State Sen. Eric Brakey (R-Auburn), “A criminal is not going to get a permit. He’s going to break the law. The same goes for gun-free zones. Criminals are not going to obey these zones.”

Other Concealed and Open Carry Wins in 2015

Those three political wins above weren’t the only noteworthy wins of 2015.

Other Wins for Gun Owners in 2015 include:

• Texas allowing concealed carry permit holders to carry on college campuses. Public universities will be forced to follow the law, but private colleges can choose to interpret the law however they see fit.

• Residents of Wisconsin will no longer have to wait 48 hours to take home newly purchased firearms with a new bill signed into place that eliminates wait times for gun purchases.

• Kansas set an example for Maine and also joined the ranks of permit-less states.

As you can see, 2015 was a great year for gun owners and concealed/open carriers. Let’s hope that 2016 sees even more victories being passed or approved in favor of Second Amendment rights and freedoms.

About The Author

Brian Belko is a freelance writer and blogger. His primary areas of focus include the outdoors and shooting sports. In addition to his freelance work, Brian also writes for Wide Open Spaces and is on the Pro Staff at Military Hunting and Fishing. When he isn’t busy writing, Brian enjoys fishing farm ponds for bass and hitting the spring woods during turkey season.